When Charles Barkley demanded a trade wanting to join Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls in 1996: "I'll sit home and play golf and see if NBC can use me"
Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley demanded a trade in 1996. He wanted to join the Chicago Bulls in 1996 because he desperately wanted to win a championship.
Charles Barkley is famous for not winning an NBA championship during his illustrious career. Barkley came closest to achieving this feat during the 1992-93 NBA season when his Phoenix Suns lost in six games to the Chicago Bulls in the NBA finals. However, the Suns team that made the NBA finals broke up quickly, leaving Barkley in another uncompetitive situation.
The 'Inside the NBA' analyst is often seen criticizing modern-day superstars for teaming up to win a championship. However, in his final years in the league, Barkley tried to do the same. One of his earliest attempts was to join Michael Jordan and his Chicago Bulls back in 1996.
The Chicago Bulls dominated the league in the 1994-95 NBA season as they went on to win a record 72 games in the regular season. Led by the legendary coach Phil Jackson, the Bulls had a dominant run in the playoffs as they coasted to a championship.
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The Chicago Bulls were one of three teams on Charles Barkley's trade list
The Chicago Tribune's Sam Smith reported that Charles Barkley had three teams on his trade wishlist. Unfortunately, the Bulls did not have enough assets to trade for the veteran power forward at the time and were left behind in the race to acquire him.
"Barkley has named the Bulls, Knicks and Rockets as teams he'd play for. The Bulls' problem is they have little other than Toni Kukoc for the Suns to accept. The Knicks appear to have the best shot with three first-round picks this season and a willingness to deal John Starks and Anthony Mason or Charles Oakley."
When Charles Barkley was asked about it in the aftermath of the Suns' first-round exit to the San Antonio Spurs in the 1996 playoffs, he said the following:
"I would trade money for the right to win a championship. I'd like to have a shot. We didn't have that this year. I can honestly say this season was terrible. It was a mediocre team. It was no fun... If they want to trade me to a team that has a chance, I'll go. If they want to trade me just anywhere, I'll sit home and play golf and see if NBC can use me."
Had the Chicago Bulls added Charles Barkley to a squad that already had the likes of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, the move would have broken the league, just like how the Golden State Warriors added Kevin Durant and broke the competitive balance in the summer of 2017.
Charles Barkley ended up on another superteam in the summer of 1996. The former league MVP was traded to the Houston Rockets, where he joined the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. However, the trio did not live up to their lofty expectations and could not even reach an NBA finals.